Book Review - A Hunger Like No Other by Kresley Cole (Immortals After Dark Series)

Lachlain MacRieve, the king of the Lykae clan, has been captured and tortured by the vampires for over a century. He was imprisoned and burned to death each and everyday only to have is own immortality revive him to endure more. Until one day he sensed his mate nearby. After waiting for his mate for more than a millenia, he gathered up all his strength to escape, to get to his mate, only to find her a small fragile female vampire.

Emmaline Troy was a timid half-vampire, half-valkyrie, the first and only of her kind. Raised by a coven of valkyries who hunts vampires for fun, she had always felt out of place, no matter how much she knows everyone loves her. Gathered up her wits, she traveled to Europe wanting to know more about her heritage, only to find a powerful Lykae, claiming her as his mate and forcing her to accompany him back to his castle in Scotland.

Our hero is very much of an alpha male; although, he can be somewhat controlling at times, it was never difficult to see through to his intention to protect and provide for his mate. Emma, our heroine, on the other hand was very timid in the begining of the novel, and she was very intimidated by Lachlain. However, the stronger side of her could soon be seen once she regained her strength - she did not even hesitate for a second before lashing out at him and dislocating his jaw in the process. :)

As the two learn to care for and fall in love with each other, it was not difficult at all for the reader to fall deeply in love with the two characters, as Lachlain became more caring and lovable, and Emma became stronger, both mentally and physically for both herself and the one she loves.

One of the things some people did not like about this novel was one of the earlier scenes in the novel, often refered to as the "capture scene" as Lachlain physically captures Emma. There are some that would argue that there was forced seduction in the scene, and others who would go as far as saying that he raped her.

Now, the "rape" part is not true. They did get intimate under the condition that Emma was not entirely willing (emphasis on entirely); however, Lachlain did not end up forcing himself on her. The characters did not have sex until both of them were ready and willing.

Now that I've got that part out of the way, let's discuss the force seduction scene, where Emma was not 100% willing. I can understand how some people would find it uneasy to read through those chapters or even find it offensive; however, I believe it is how the author portrayed it that made the scene work for me (and many others). First of all, the reader must understand that Lachlain was tortured for more than a century, and he was in a mentally unstable state at that time. Second of all, he was tortured by vampires, which was exactly what Emma is, and that made things much worse. Put yourself in his shoes, when you've waited for your mate for 1,000+ years just to find her one of the people who have tortured you for 100+ years of your life. It was reasonable that he wanted revenge, and it was reasonable that he hated her in the begining. However, that's not the only reason why the forced seduction scene was justifiable. The cause of it was, yes. But it was how he treated Emma later on in the story that redeemed his character, how he looked pass his hatred for the vampires, how cared for Emma, and how he realized that he cannot be controlling her that made him such a lovable character.